PTM leader thanks Afghan president for what Pakistan condemns as ‘gross interference’

An elected member of Pakistan’s parliament, who belongs to the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), has thanked Afghan President Ashraf Ghani for a statement which has been unanimously condemned by Pakistani politicians and media as “gross interference” in Pakistan’s internal matters.

A tweet by Mohsin Dawar, a young MNA from Waziristan region, thanking President Ghani might only damage the PTM’s cause by providing grist to the rumour mill that someone else is pulling the strings of the movement.

The Afghan leader on Thursday took to Twitter to unleash unprecedented criticism of the Pakistani government for its alleged rights abuses in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

Ghani’s tweet came days after a group of PTM activists were detained during a protest against the killing of a fellow activist Professor Ibrahim, alias Arman Loni, allegedly by police in Loralai district of Balochistan.

Surprisingly while Pakistani government, politicians, and media persons condemned with one voice President Ghani’s “gross interference in Pakistan’s internal matters”, MNA Mohsin Dawar thanked the Afghan leader for his support.

Pakistani security officials have long suspected that the Afghan intelligence agencies support the PTM in an attempt to destabilise Pakistan by cashing in on the grievances of the Pashtun people.

Kabul and PTM both deny this allegation, but MNA Dawar’s tweet, which is in stark contrast to the state stance, could only lend credence to suspicion.

Amrullah Saleh, former chief of Afghanistan’s NDS intelligence agency and incumbent interior minister who is known for his hostility towards Pakistan, also weighed in on the issue after Ghani’s tweet.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi rejected the "irresponsible statement" of President Ghani as "gross interference".

The Ghani administration was left out of high-profile intra-Afghan reconciliation talks in Moscow where the Taliban for the first time sat across the table with Afghanistan's politicians, including former president Hamid Karzai. And analysts believe Ghani decided to vent his frustration by directing his criticism at Pakistan.

Columnist Musharraf Zaidi also voiced similar views. "Poor Ashraf Ghani. Can't get an invite to Moscow for talks about the future of the country he is president of, so makes a play for some likes on Lar o Bar Facebook. Adorable," he said.

Senior anchorperson and journalist Hamid Mir accused Kabul of nurturing the Khorasan franchise of ISIS.

Former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar warned the Afghan leader that his "comment on what is clearly an internal matter for Pakistan… can only worsen the situation".

Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari took "strong exception to this absurd statement" of Ghani and advised him to better address the grievances of his own people".

PPP Senator Sherry Rehman reminded the Afghan leader that democratic forces in Pakistan have already been fighting for civil and human rights and they don't need anyone from outside to interfere.

Another senior journalist, Mubashir Zaidi, called it an attempt to divide the Pakistani nation. "You're attempt to divide us will fail," he wrote on Twitter.

Calling the questionable tweet ‘blatantly provocative’, senior journalist Syed Talat Hussain wrote on Twitter: “Mohsin Dawar is only proving his critics and nasty theories about PTM correct.”

When all Pakistani politicians and media persons criticised the Afghan president’s Twitter statement, MNA Mohsin Dawar’s note of thanks to Ghani might only hurt the PTM and strengthen the perception that the movement is doing someone else’s bidding.